Dear Common Dreams Readers: Common Dreams is a small non-profit that exists only because of the support of our readers. No advertising; no paywalls: our content is free. But our costs are real. A free and independent press is essential to the health of a functioning democracy. Independent journalism and democracy itself have never been more fragile, more at risk than now. Without your support, we will not exist. Will you join again with those readers who have come forward to make sure Common Dreams has a future?Every donation makes a difference.

US Announces New Pakistan Aid

US Announces New Pakistan Aid

by

US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton (L) chats with Pakistan's Foreign Minister Shah Mehmood Qureshi in Islamabad on July 18. Clinton on Monday announced major aid projects for Pakistan as she sought tougher action from Islamabad to combat militants ahead of a key donor meeting in Afghanistan. (AFP/Aamir Qureshi)

The US government has announced a major new aid
package for Pakistan, with hundreds of millions of dollars to be spent
on projects in Pakistan's energy and water sectors.

Hillary Clinton, the US secretary of state, announced the $500m
package at the start of a day-long "strategic dialogue" in Islamabad
between American and Pakistani officials.

Monday's meeting is the second such dialogue
between the US and Pakistan.

The first, held
in Washington in March, ended with promises of better co-operation
between the two countries. Clinton said on Monday that the meetings
would help to end the "trust deficit" between the two countries.

"We know that there is a perception held by too
many Pakistanis that America's commitment to them begins and ends with
security," Clinton said. "But security is just one piece of this vital
partnership."

Dams and hospitals

Electricity is one of Pakistan's top priorities. A large chunk of the
new US aid will be spent on new power supplies, including the Gomal Zam
dam in Pakistan's Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa province, and several
hydroelectric projects in Balochistan province.

Clinton said the US would also fund several solar and wind energy
projects.

Pakistan's electric grid is chronically overtaxed, with hours-long
blackouts common across the country. The Pakistan Electric Power Companyreported earlier this week that demand for
electricity outstripped supply by nearly 5,000 megawatts.

US aid will also be used to renovate three hospitals, in Karachi,
Lahore and Jacobabad, to launch several agricultural programmes, and to
expand access to clean water in Pakistan.

Shah Mehmood Qureshi, the Pakistani foreign minister, said the aid
package would bring important benefits for Pakistan.

But security concerns remain a fundamental part of the US-Pakistan
relationship.

Clinton confirmed that the US plans to designate the so-called
Haqqani network as a "foreign terrorist organisation." The network is
based in Pakistan, and considered the deadliest threat to US and Nato
forces in Afghanistan.

Pakistan's intelligence services have long been accused of having
close links to the Haqqani network. Qureshi declined to comment directly
on the US plan to act against the group.

"The US wants Pakistan to disassociate itself from the Haqqani group,
and to the extent that it can and it will, to go after [them],"
Mosharraf Zaidi, a Pakistani journalist, told Al Jazeera. "But there is a
very wide gulf between the two countries on this issue."

Clinton is scheduled to meet General Ashfaq Kayani, the Pakistani
army chief, before departing Islamabad.

Further

In the vile wake of Charlottesville - those sweaty young white men, pasty faces contorted, screaming, "Blood and Soil!" "Jews Will Not Replace Us!" "Fuck You Faggots!" - what to say? Just this: This is racism, domestic terrorism, pure hate. This is not who we are, and this is not ok. Most vital, those "whose pigmentation matches theirs" must speak "with unflinching clarity (or) we simply amen it... They need white faces speaking directly into their white faces, loudly on behalf of love."

Common Dreams brings you the news that matters.

Sign up for Newsletter

Connect With Us

X

Your Support Makes A Difference: Over 90% of the Common Dreams budget comes from reader support. We rely on you. Will you join again with those readers who have come forward to make sure Common Dreams has a future? We can't do it without you.